realthog | a matter of complexion

I got an e-mail today from the excellent ColorofChange.org. It reads:

Dear Paul,

Two weeks ago outside Philadelphia, 65 children from a summer camp tried to go swimming at a club that their camp had a contract to use. Apparently, the people at the club didn't know that the group of kids was predominantly Black.

When the campers entered the pool, White parents allegedly took their kids out of the water, and the swimming club's staff asked the campers to leave. The next day, the club told the summer camp that their membership would be canceled and that their payment would be refunded. When asked why, the club's manager said that a lot of kids "would change the complexion ... and the atmosphere of the club."¹

A "Whites only" pool in 2009 should not be tolerated. The club's actions appear to be a violation of section 1981 of the Civil Rights Act.² Whether or not any laws were violated, a "Whites only" pool should be something every American condemns.

Please join us in doing exactly that, and please email your friends and family and invite them to do the same. Your signature will also be used to call on the Department of Justice to evaluate suing the facility under federal law. It takes just a moment to do both, here:

http://www.colorofchange.org/swim/?id=1769-186583

Obama is President but that doesn't mean that suddenly all is fine when it comes to race in America. This is a vivid reminder of what we know still lies beneath the surface.

We all know stories like this one -- similar incidents play out quietly every day in different communities across the country. The difference in this case is that folks got caught and there was a contract in place that makes for a potentially illegal act.

Standing up now isn't just about making things right for these kids in Philadelphia or bringing consequences to this swim club (called the Valley Swim Club). It's about creating a climate of accountability everywhere. If we can publicly shame the Valley Swim Club and hold them accountable for this incident, it will make others think twice before engaging in what appears to be blatant discrimination.

Please join us in condemning the Valley Swim Club's behavior and calling on the Justice Department to investigate whether they violated civil rights laws. And please ask your friends and family to do the same.

http://www.colorofchange.org/swim/?id=1769-186583

Thanks and Peace,

-- James, Gabriel, William, Dani and the rest of the ColorOfChange.org team
July 10th, 2009

Help support our work. ColorOfChange.org is powered by YOU -- your energy and dollars. We take no money from lobbyists or large corporations that don't share our values, and our tiny staff ensures your contributions go a long way. You can contribute here:

https://secure.colorofchange.org/contribute/?id=1769-186583

References:

1. "'Pool Boots Kids Who Might "Change the Complexion,'" NBC Philadelphia, 07-08-09
http://bit.ly/90Zyr

2. "Section 1981 Summary," Employment Law Information Network
http://www.elinfonet.com/1981sum.php

More Resources:

"60 Black Kids Booted from Philly Pool For Being Black -- Speak Out," Jill Tubman at Jack and Jill Politics, 07-08-09
http://bit.ly/GkJTs

VIDEO: "Please Don't Change the Complexion of our Pool," This Week in Blackness, 07-08-09
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=saTCMJVYljU

"Swim Club Accused of Discrimination," FOX 29 Philadelphia, 07-08-09
http://bit.ly/7EKGy

"Valley Swim Club: Day Two," Adam B at Daily Kos, 07-08-09
http://bit.ly/qbpSA

Please, if you can find a moment, add your name to the petition. This kind of barbarism shouldn't be tolerated in a supposedly civilized society.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

That's appalling. I'd be happy to sign, but I've noticed that the standard US response to non-Usians doing such things seems often to be 'get out of our business' and it might therefore do more harm than good.
Although, curiously, many of those who don't want our opinions fail to understand why we might be less than pleased if they interfere with us. Odd, that.

To be honest, I'd have thought an international contribution would in this case be very helpful: the Valley Swim Club dorks are probably so far comforting themselves with the thought that all they have to contend with is a bunch of uppity blacks (except, natch, "blacks" won't be the word they use). The more they can be jolted into the realization that it's not just blacks who despise them, and not just Americans, the better.

"Although, curiously, many of those who don't want our opinions fail to understand why we might be less than pleased if they interfere with us. Odd, that."

You're dealing with the small but bigmouthed coterie of Americans who fail to understand that there's a whole great big universe outside the USA. These arseholes dominate both the major political parties -- not just, although to an infinitely greater extent, the Republicans -- and they're responsible also for the fact that in many ways this country is stuck somewhere pre-Enlightenment: hence such imbecilities as the ideology that, if you can only shout loud enough, evolution won't be true.

Almost all of the Americans I deal with daily don't fit that stereotype: most have roughly the same worldview as you or me. (You'll have realized this from reading the commenters on my own LJ.) Yet their reasonable voices are drowned by those of redneck numbnutses and career politicians, on both sides of the House, who've been bought by corporate interests.

I have the aching feeling that the US is a democracy threatening at any moment to bring itself into existence.

a matter of complexion

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